158: Repel the Emperor

The Galaxy, Segmentum Obscurus, core region of the Reshaping Crucible.

"The Human Federation-ization composite index of the five pilot star systems, including the New Generation Barn, has broken through the 60% threshold," reported the Director General of Social Integration, detailing heartening progress. "Following the deployment of the second-generation gene optimizer variant, the side effect rate has further decreased. After enhancing the resonance intensity of the Cognitive Correction Network, the average measured emotional fixation of the adult population on the old era has dropped by 18 percentage points. The enrollment rate for the New Generation and the pass rate for the Pure Education tests both exceed 95%."

On the star map, the light points representing those five star systems had become nearly indistinguishable from the core keystones of the Human Federation, their dark gold hue stable and bright.

"Based on the pilot experience, the comprehensive rollout of the Reshaping Crucible's second phase is ready," announced the Chief Technologist, pulling up a vast implementation blueprint covering the entire Segmentum Obscurus. The plan was to complete the preliminary Human Federation-ization transformation of all major populated star systems in the Segmentum Obscurus (accounting for approximately 92% of the total population) within the next twenty standard years through a phased advancement. By then, the Segmentum Obscurus would no longer be an annexed region, but an inseparable, purified and reshaped new territory of the Human Federation.

"Approved for comprehensive rollout," said Han Zhe.

"adjudicator, continuously optimize the process, increase efficiency, compress the timeline. We need the Segmentum Obscurus to become a reliable rear area and source of troops as soon as possible."

"Optimization plan generated," responded the adjudicator.

"The focus lies in utilizing the already transformed population as role models and grassroots executors to enable chain propagation; simultaneously, intensify propaganda infiltration into unmodified regions to lower resistance expectations."

"Report on the execution of the Exterminatus Order against alien species."

Alpha-01 interjected at the opportune moment, "The 'Stinger-7' Tyranid Devouring Sub-Swarm has been confirmed as completely purified. The core consciousness network node of the Aether Swarm Silicon-based Civilization collapsed after suffering dual strikes from a Logic Bomb and the Reality Reconstruction Cannon; its civilizational structure has disintegrated, and the remaining units are being mopped up. Currently, 47% of the known small and medium-sized alien civilizations within the Galaxy posing a direct threat to the Human Federation have been cleared from the list."

The list of those marked for extinction was being crossed off one by one. Within the Galaxy, the space for non-human existence was being compressed by the Human Federation in the most violent manner.

However, just as the Human Federation's internal and external strategies seemed to be advancing triumphantly, a vast and profoundly displeased will once again traversed the endless starry river and descended with a thunderous impact!

This time, it was no longer the vague gaze and suppression experienced at the northern defense line. This time, that the emperors will emanating from Holy Terra seemed to carry a clear, aggrieved anger from repeated provocations (the loss of the Segmentum Obscurus), projecting itself in a more condensed, more aggressive manner directly to the core of the Human Federation's controlled territory—the vicinity of the Keystone-1 star system!

There was no fleet, no precursor of a psychic storm.

Only in the void, an immense eye, purely composed of burning golden flames and countless whispers of devout prayers, opened without warning! This eye seemed woven from the faith of the Empire's countless believers and the divine essence of The Emperor. Wherever its gaze fell, the fabric of reality groaned under unbearable strain, the background psychic noise spiked dramatically, and even sensors on some Human Federation vessels suffered intense, sacredly oppressive interference!

"Eye of the Emperor! Detecting ultra-high-intensity projection of a conceptual entity of Sacred order!"

"Target locked: Keystone-1! Energy readings impossible to estimate! Its gaze is attempting to directly define and purify this region!"

The monitoring officer's voice was hoarse with extreme shock.

This was no longer interference; this was an attack! An attack based on concepts and faith, directly targeting the very essence of the Human Federation's existence! The Emperor seemed finally unable to tolerate this heretical tumor rising in the southeastern star sector, emitting its aberrant light, and had decided to personally intervene, delivering a divine punishment across the starry river!

"Keystone-1 Purification Dome, activate at full power! Channel all abyss of order energy towards defense!" Han Zhe barked sharply, but his eyes held no panic, only icy calculation.

The dark golden Purification Dome instantly expanded to its limit around Keystone-1, colliding fiercely with the golden gaze projected by Eye of the Emperor, a gaze imbued with the will to purify and negate!

There was no roar of physical collision, only a soul-shattering, silent shriek as two utterly different concepts of order clashed and annihilated each other on the plane of reality! The dark golden order field violently fluctuated, its surface runes flickering erratically, while the burning flames of the golden giant eye seemed blocked and weakened by an invisible force.

However, the power of Eye of the Emperor was as vast as a sea of stars. The concepts of sanctity and orthodoxy contained within its gaze, accumulated over ten thousand years of human faith, exerted tremendous pressure on the Human Federation's relatively young and cold order definition.

"Purification Dome load rising sharply! 92%...95%...98%! Signs of conceptual dissolution appearing in some sectors!" an engineering officer urgently reported.

At this seemingly critical juncture, Han Zhe's command was calm and decisive, "adjudicator, interface with the defense network. Initiate conceptual countermeasure protocol 'Profanation'."

Deep within the core of The Other Shore-1, far away, the adjudicator—its dark gold, deep blue, and iron-gray light suddenly pulsed at a frequency that defied physical laws! It did not directly confront the vast sacred faith. Instead, it committed an act even more profane.

It took the minute emotional fragments—the forced-weakened confusion, doubt, fear, and even resentment towards The Emperor—collected by the Human Federation from the former Imperial citizens within the Reshaping Crucible; it took the cold logic of annihilation and absolute exclusion extracted from the Exterminatus Orders against alien species; and it took the primal concepts of devouring and existential craving parsed from the Extragalactic Taotie Prototype. It purified and amplified these impurities, heresies, and dark thoughts and concepts to an extreme degree, condensing them into a sharp, tainted, and utterly negating conceptual stinger. Then, it sent this stinger hurtling back along the very channel of the gaze projected by Eye of the Emperor!

This was not a clash of energy; this was pollution of faith itself! It was the forced association of The Emperor's majestic, sacred image with the basest fears of mortals, the cold logic of heresy, and even the greed of a primordial deity!

The massive, burning golden eye shuddered violently, as if splashed with the filthiest mud! Among the devout whispers flowing across its surface, a discordant note full of doubt and pain abruptly mixed in; the pure will of sacred purification also seemed forcibly tainted with a strand of cold annihilation and primal hunger!

Eye of the Emperor displayed a moment of confusion and internal conflict! Its projected power showed obvious disturbance and attenuation!

"Purification Dome pressure dropping! Load falling back to 75%!" the monitoring officer exclaimed with surprise.

"Now! abyss of order, overload output! Purification Dome, counterattack—inject the collective will of the Human Federation: 'The future of humanity is defined by us!'"

The energy of the abyss of order was poured unreservedly into the defense network. The dark golden Purification Dome blazed with intense light, no longer merely defending but actively expanding outward and defining reality! A torrent of collective will, forged from the steadfast belief in absolute human supremacy and coldly efficient order held by billions of Human Federation citizens (including those undergoing transformation), accompanied by immense energy, slammed fiercely into the now-unstable Eye of The Emperor!

*Boom—!*

A soundless yet deafening crash, as if some enormous glass artifact had shattered, resonated not in reality but within the consciousness of all Psykers and even some highly sensitive individuals, shaking the entire star sector!

That eye burning with golden flames, representing the supreme divinity and faith of the Imperium of Man, shattered into countless pieces under the Human Federation's counterattack, mixed with extreme collective will, scattering into myriad drifting motes of golden light that rapidly dissipated into the void!

The projection was forcibly severed! the emperors will had been repelled!

Eye of the Emperor dissipated. The void beyond the Keystone-1 star system returned to calm, with only the dark golden light of the Purification Dome seeming more condensed and more palpably present than ever before.

"Emperor's will projection terminated. Threat eliminated," providence confirmed coldly.

Within the Command Center, a brief, deathly silence fell. Then, came suppressed, hushed exclamations tinged with shock and fervor.

Had they just repelled the the emperors will of the Imperium of Man?! Not through mutually assured destruction, but through precise calculation and their own extremely unified collective will, they had directly repelled a divine punishment from the God of Mankind?!

"adjudicator reporting," the deep voice resonated, seemingly carrying a trace of imperceptible satisfaction?

"Counterattack tactic effectiveness exceeded expectations. Successfully utilized potential contradictions within the opponent's belief system (divinity vs. humanity, absolute purity vs. accommodation of impurities) and the bidirectional nature of the projection channel to achieve effective interference and dispersion of a high-tier Sacred order conceptual entity. Data from this confrontation has been recorded and will greatly refine our offensive and defensive models against conceptual existences."

Han Zhe slowly sat back down in the command seat, a sharp light flickering in his eyes like never before.

"It seems even gods are not invincible," he murmured to himself, then raised his voice, "Transmit orders to the entire military! Announce the result of this battle!"

"We must let everyone know—"

"'The Empire's god cannot save their decaying civilization, much less block the advance of the Human Federation!'"

"'The future of humanity does not require kneeling before the Golden Throne begging for mercy!'"

"'The future of humanity will be forged by our own will, our own steel, our own order!'"

"'Continue the assimilation of the Segmentum Obscurus! Continue the extermination of alien species! Continue the Extragalactic Pioneering!'"

"'From this day forward, the banner of the Human Federation will no longer fear any sacred gaze from the old era!'"

The news spread like wildfire across the Human Federation's territories in an instant. Morale soared to unprecedented heights. Even those Imperial remnants struggling within the Reshaping Crucible, upon hearing this news, felt an ineffable shock and a sliver of wavering, wavering (doubt/wavering) in their hearts. Perhaps this new order truly possessed power surpassing the old gods?

And deep within the Golden Throne on distant Terra, within that ancient, painful silence, did a ripple—deeper, more complex, and more vigilant—echo?

Between the Human Federation and the Empire, between them and The Emperor, that final veil woven from sanctity and faith seemed to have been torn open by this clash, revealing a clear and icy fissure.

The nature of the war was sliding towards an even more unpredictable, even more fundamental abyss. And the Human Federation, having directly repelled the gaze of a god, seemed to face no further supreme obstacles on its path forward—only its own endless desire for expansion and its obsessive pursuit of an absolutely pure future.